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The Mustard Seed
The Storm
Jesus
climbed up
the
mountain alone
where he
prayed.
Evening
came and
the
disciples
were on
the
lake.
On the
lake
the winds
began
to
blow
and the
waves
began to
rise
higher
and higher.
The
storm
waves
began to
rock the
boat
violently. It
seemed
that the
waves
would
dash
the boat.
Is this
familiar
to you
and me?
The
storms
of
sin
rise to
strike
down your
life.
The
storm
waves of
sin seek
to
overwhelm you
and bring
you down.
Jesus
Appears to
the
Disciples
When
the disciples
were
caught in a
storm
and in
a state
of
emergency,
Jesus walked
on the
stormy
lake towards
them.
It is
good to
understand
that
Jesus is
the
Shepherd of
our
soul and
He
walks
above
the storms
of our
lives.
These
waves cannot
affect
Jesus. When
the
disciples
saw
Jesus they
thought
Him to
be an
apparition
and
they started
shouting
in fear:
it
is an
apparition.
When
our lives
are in
distress,
we are
not
able to
see
Jesus and
His
power
and
authority because
of our
distress.
However,
Jesus
spoke
to the
disciples
about
the storm
and
said: Be
comforted!
I AM!
Do not
fear.
Jesus
calms us
down in
our
distress and
advises
us not
to fear.
The
fear
rose
because of
the
storm
waves,
as a
trap
to the
disciple.
The
disciples
of
Jesus cannot
serve
God under
this
kind of
fear.
It is
important
to
understand
that
fear prevents
you
from serving
God.
Jesus
wants to
calm
our hearts
down
and remove
all
distressing
fears
away, so
that we
can
safely walk
forward
with
Jesus.
Peter
shouts from
the
middle of
the
storm:
Lord,
if it
be
thou, bid
me
come unto
thee
on the
water.
Jesus
answered to
Peter:
Come.
Seeing
Jesus
and hearing
the
calming words
of
Jesus calmed
Peter’s
heart
and drove
the
fear away.
Peter
was encouraged
and
thought about
walking
on
the lake
as
well.
Jesus calls
Peter
to come
by
way of
faith
to
Himself.
So Peter
started
by
faith
to
walk on
the
stormy lake.
Now
we need
to
stop here.
We
are not
to go
into
any stormy
situation
before
Jesus
gives you
instructions
to
come!
It is
very
important that
you
do not
go
forward before
Jesus
commands you
to go
forward,
because
you
cannot walk
on
the stormy
waters,
which
surround you.
Peter
believed
Jesus
and rose
from
the boat
and got
into
the stormy
lake
and started
to walk
towards
Jesus. When
Peter
looked away
from
Jesus and
started
to
notice how
the
wind raised
the
storm waves,
he
started
to sink.
Peter
shouted,
afraid: "Lord,
help me.
So
Jesus reached
His
hands and
grabbed
Peter and
said
to him:
Little-faith,
why did
you
doubt?
When
you
look to
Jesus
in faith,
the
storm waves
of this
world
cannot drown
you,
but
when you
look
away from
Jesus
and start
to
watch the
waves
of this
world,
these
stormy waves
are
going to
drown
you. When
Peter
looked away
from
Jesus, fear
returned
to his
heart.
It is
the
same with
us when
we look
away
from Jesus;
this
world and
its
waves drown
us.
Only by
believing
in
Jesus can
we walk
in this
sinful
and stormy
world
and these
stormy
situations cannot
make
us fall.
We can
walk
with Jesus
over
all stormy
situations.
Little-faith
Jesus
called
Peter a man
of
little faith.
Did
Jesus taunt
Peter?
No! Jesus
said
that Peter
had
little faith.
Think
about
it! Peter
walked
on the
small
amount of
belief
on the
stormy
lake!
Peter had
little
faith and
through
that little
faith
he walking
on the
stormy
lake. The
Bible
teaches
that
little faith
is
efficient faith
if it
is
anchored and
attached
to
Jesus.
Little faith
can
deal with
large
matters when
that
little faith
is
attached to
Jesus.
Today
we see
moving
all around
us
super heroes
who too
often
prove to
be
false prophets.
These
super heroes
bluster
on their
big
belief,
which often
proves
to be
non-biblical
belief.
These
super
heroes
often get
distressed
in
hearts of
small
men. People
can see
through
these super
heroes
for the
miserable
faithless
and
failures that
they
are. I
leave
to you,
my
friend,
words of
comfort;
based
on little
faith
which is
anchored
on
Jesus, you
can
achieve
big
things!
Mustard
seed
You
need
only have a
little
amount of
the
mustard seed
sized
belief,
which
God plants
in you
so that
you can
see
the
work of
God.
Just as
the
mustard seed
grows
into a
large tree,
in the
same
way you
can
grow in
faith.
But
growth in
faith
is such,
that
you will
reduce
and Christ
increase
in you.
When
John the
Baptist
saw Jesus
he said:
say:
He (JESUS)
must
increase,
but I must
decrease.
Jesus
said:
If you
have
faith as a
grain
of mustard,
you
will say
to this
mountain,
Move
from here
to
there! And
it will
move.
And
nothing shall
be
impossible to
you.
What
is the
Petri
Paavola |
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